Hump Day Confessional 6/12/13

So, I am sure most of you know, the reason for my lack of posts lately is because of "the move".  I say "the move" like that because I hear it with dramatic, scary music in the background.   So, I will start with the good:
I love, love, LOVE our new house....but the building process was like birthin' a baby.  I was on a total and complete emotional rollercoaster for 6 months.  But the end result?  LOVE IT!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I pretty much want to make out with my front door!!

 

 

 

I love, love, LOVE my new kitchen!

I also want to make out with the AMAZING hardwood floors!

But "the move"....OHHH "the move".  I thought it would be so much easier since we were only moving 3 miles up the road, and we would have 2 weeks from close until the end of our lease.  I thought we would be able to take our time and it would be a easy.  HAH!  It all started when our movers double booked, so they were only able to get the truck loaded (with the big stuff), then go do their other jobs, then come back at 6:00pm and unload, then go back and grab the rest of the stuff we couldn't get by ourselves.  This left an ass-load of stuff that I was moving by myself for a week after I dropped the kids off at school and before I picked them up.  Then I spent a week deep cleaning the old house.  UGH!  Moving a six-person household is not for the faint of heart. Now, I am in unpacking hell.  I say unpacking hell because the packing ended up being so disorganized, the unpacking is taking FOREVER! 

So, onto confessions:

~I have been eating every meal outside on our back patio.  There is nothing like listening to the birds chirping while enjoying some coffee in the morning.  Now dinner on the other hand...not so relaxing, lol!  We haven't purchased our new outdoor table yet, so there are 6 of us in camp chairs squeezed around a cheap IKEA outdoor table while listening to the the remains of construction and the construction workers.  Nothing like the sounds of Mariachi music with an entire crew singing along, interrupted by the POW, POW, POW of the nail gun.  Ahhh, good times!

~My sweet blue-eyed baby graduated from Kindergarten this year.  I could go on and on about how time flies and it seemed like yesterday that I was teaching him how to walk.  While I do feel all those things, I am most struck by how bad I sucked as a mom at the end of the school year this year.  Going back to the whole "moving" situation, I was lucky to have been able to find clean clothes (mostly) to put on him and me for graduation.  Ignore the fact that he went weeks without me signing his homework folder, reading aloud, packing his lunch (don't worry, he bought it at the cafeteria), NOT showing up to volunteer when I was supposed to, showing up in carpool lane looking like a crazy woman and smelling like a goat, and showing up to his graduation with no balloons and prizes and sporting 3 inch roots. 

~I coached my daughters Volleyball team this season...the Hulkettes.  At first I was petrified to do it because (1) these wee ladies pack a powerful punch.  In 6th grade, they are jump serving and basically kicking the ass of anyone I played Volleyball with in school.  I mean, what could I teach them?!  (2)  I didn't want to be the fat coach whom the parents looked at and thought "what the hell is she having my kid do that she can't do herself" (3) Middle school girl drama makes me want to hurl.
However, all that fear and trepidation was for NOTHING!  We had a fabulous time and only lost 2 games for the season.  The girls and parents were AMAZING and we definitely had the most FUN of any team in the league, hence the green tongues and the GRRR face for our team pic.

~I made quilts for my nieces whom are stationed in Germany.  It is the closest I have been able to give them a hug.  The above picture is the WONDERFUL housewarming present by brother and sister-in-law sent to us from an artist in Germany.  Funny thing is, it says "Welcome to our Home", but "Rouse" (our last name) basically means "get the hell out".
OH, the confession part of this is how sucky I am at going to the post office.  I started these quilts back in November...it took me until April to finish them...then, not until "the move" did I actually get my sorry ass to the post office.

Quilt for my new baby niece Harper <3

Quilt for my 8 year old niece Maddy, who loves Monster High and peace signs.

~Last but not least, I confess, that I feel like I have been eating like a ROCKSTAR the last few weeks (well, not the bloated, drunk, druggy type rock star)  Lots and lots of grilled meat, veggies, and salads.  Absolutely NO ice cream...yay!

Honey Lime Tilapia with Orange Cashew Rice

Hubs made homemade Beef Jerky

Cheater Migas with mushrooms

mmmm.....steak....

Oh well, yeah.  National Donut Day sucked me in.  But I only ate my 1 free donut, so yay for that :)

So, how have you all been??

Hump Day Confessional

Good morning!
So, I have a confessional for you today that is also me thinking out loud...sometimes that is just what I need to do to process.

~  First off, some exciting news that has been taking up SO much time for me lately.  We are building a house!  We began looking at builders and neighborhoods a few months after we moved to Austin.  It took us a long time, but after seeing EVERYTHING in the 20 miles radius we wanted to be in, we made our choice and put a contract in November.  They broke ground in January and poured a foundation...then it seemed to stall a bit.  Now they have gone CRAZY and in a matter of a week, the house is almost framed!  This is such an emotional roller coaster, lol!  I feel like I am birthing a baby.  I see hiccups along the way and get totally freaked out, then see they got the issues fixed and feel silly for freaking out in the first place.  And yes, I am totally stalking the place.  I am out at the site at least 3 times a day.  We are set to close the beginning of May, which isn't as far off as it sounds.  I will just be SO happy to be settled....this will be our 4th move in less than 4 years, but thankfully, it should be our last for at least 20.
Here is where we were at as of Monday:

sort of side pic

front pic

~I loathe the PTA.  Seriously, the PTA women make me bat-shit crazy.  I am VERY anti-fundraising.  I do not allow my children to go door to door asking for money.  I will not allow them to call friends and family and ask them to buy stupid-ass stuff so they can "win" a light-up bouncy ball.  The PTA fundraising EVERY FREAKING MONTH makes me want to stab my eyes out.  I know they say it is so important and all the money is going to such worth while causes, but come on!  Enough already.   Plus, they have no wine at the meetings.  And come on, if they are forcing us to sit in tables and chairs 20 sizes too small listening to the masterminds figure out how they are going to make everyone else do all the grunt work, the least they can do is provide wine.

~This year is my 20th high school reunion.  I am not even sure how that is remotely possible.  Didn't I just get out of college??  I mean, sure I have the kids, gray hair, and wrinkles to prove otherwise, but really?!  I am not even sure how that happened.  I was all gung-ho about going back to Colorado to attend this summer, but now I am re-thinking.  I mean, in my class of a whopping 32 people, most of them are on my Facebook so I know what they look like and what they are doing.  Besides, I am pretty sure most of them are PTA Mamas.

~I change my hair color a LOT.  The hubs loves it (I think) because he gets to sleep with a blond, brunette, and red-head all in one year.  Currently, I went red with blond streaks.  But now, I think I am itching to go dark or maybe ombre-ish.  Anyway, here is what it looks like now.


Me and the Hubs

~For the 2nd year in a row, after cutting sugars out so severely, I have got sick as a dog.  Not the detox kind of sick, but my immune system crashes and I am sick-sick-sick.  Being an intuitive person, something about this isn't right for me.  While I know and believe processed sugars are bad and sugars are hidden in everything, I don't know if I can get on board with the fruit being too much sugar and too much of certain veggies are too much sugar thing.  Fruit juice, yes.  Whole fruit, no.  I am re-thinking, re-examining, and re-tooling what I am doing.  I know I feel better without grains and processed sugars, but I think I may try doing clean-eating and paleo-ish for a while.  I get so frustrated when I feel like I am being deprived when what I want is a freaking apple.   I want to eat whole food, fresh food, healthy food.  And if that involves a banana in my smoothie, then so be it.  I have learned a TON from BFC/Paleo/Low Carb groups that I completely plan on integrating into my eating plan, so I am really thankful for that.

~I have not weighed in since my second re-duex week.  I tend to get all obsessive and critical when I weigh in every week.  I am going to take a break from the scale and weigh in once a month.  I think a body (especially a womans body) is in such continual flux, you can't get a true picture everyday or every week as to what is going on.  Now I know I have regained some of that initial false belly fat loss, but I just feel better knowing that these are changes I can truly live with for the rest of my life.

So, that is all I have for now :)
I hope you are all having a super fabulous week so far!
MUCH love - xoxo

NOT a Hump Day Confessional

So, I had planned on doing a Hump-Day Confessional on Wednesday....unfortunately, I was in 3rd day detox headache GRR! mode.  Yes, you read that right.  I am back on the wagon.  I kept putting it off, thinking of more and more dishes and treats I wanted to have before I jumped back in.  Then, I had a friend from college issue a "Biggest Loser" 12 week challenge and while I was hmm-ing and hawww-ing at the thought of starting something so soon and all the things I still had in the freezer and pantry...all the Christmas candy treats I still hadn't eaten, I knew it was time. There is never going to be a "right time".  There is always going to be some holiday, some event, some excuse why I couldn't start. 
Funny thing is, whenever I would eat one of those dishes or treats that I was stalling over, it was never as good as I remembered it being.  Honestly, that is what I have kept/keep reminding myself of this week when the craving for a cookie, some cake, or some carb-heavy food strikes.

I do have two things to confess today:
~I did gain all the weight back that I had previously lost.  So here I go again, staring over from square one.  When I logged back onto myfitnesspal and saw my old stats, it hit me....if I had only stayed on track, I would be well at my goal weight by now....wearing cute clothes and not dodging pictures at Christmas.
~I am petrified this time.  Last year, I was filled with resolve and determination.  Then the excuses came.  Then the out of control spiral came.  My sister lost a large amount of weight about 5 years ago.  Then she gained it back.  I could never understand how she could have let that happen.   I am scared to death to be one of those people who loses 50-100 pounds only to gain it back.

This week was filled with some pretty terrible headaches, crabby moments, and cravings.  But I got through them.   

Hump Day Confessional

(((tap, tap, tap)))....is this thing on?
It has been a long time friends...a very long time.  I took an unexpected, extended sabbatical this summer.  After packing and moving cross country, staying in a hotel with 3 kids for a month, subsequent unpacking, birthday celebration month combined with back-to-school craziness....I just couldn't do anything more.
But, here I am...back with a confessional!

~ For my birthday last week, I went kayaking.  I have never been before.  I never thought that would be something I could/should do until I lost weight.  I mean, would I look like...a big gal on a tiny kayak.  Could I even get on and balance?  What would people think when they saw me?  What if I got out there and didn't have the strength to get back?  Guess what?  I DID IT!  I threw all of my concerns to the wind and DID IT!  I am tired of waiting for the "as soon as I...." excuse to start living my life.  I LOVED IT!  It is something I fully intend on doing again and again. 

~ I have some serious carpool lane rage.  Seeing that I am in carpool lane for about 2 hours a day, I get to observe MUCH jackass behavior.  It is a carpool lane, not a parking lot people!  It is NOT ok for you to race and cut in front of the whole lane just because someone isn't moving up as fast as you see fit.  I see red...seriously...why do you think YOU are so much more important than the hundreds of other people trying to pick-up or drop off their kidlets?!?!  AGHH!

~ For the first time in 11 years, I am alone during the day.  This has been a MUCH harder transition than I ever thought.  I know there are some Mom's who relish the day that they actually get some time to themselves.  However, at this moment I find that I am the Mom wandering around Super Target,  going oh so slowly, murmuring to myself with employees asking every 5 minutes if I need help finding something.  My oldest baby started middle school and my youngest baby started full day kindergarten.  (((sigh)))  It has hit me HARD how quickly time goes.

~ I have taken up watching re-runs of Beverly Hills 90210 during the day.

~ And, for the biggest confession...I have completely and totally fallen off the wagon.  I have spent the entire summer eating whatever I want.  I haven't stepped on a scale to see the damage, but just based on the tightness of shorts, I would say I am back where I started.  BLAH!  I know I need to get back on it, but I have a bad case of the "I'll start tomorrows"...

Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing

I was looking through my food pictures lovingly this morning remembering when I used to make meals like this.  Eating has been so completely uninspired and honestly, not the healthiest lately.  One of the hardest parts of moving cross-country is not moving any food.  So, we are eating up all the random bits from the pantry and freezer.  I cannot WAIT to get moved and fill my fridge and pantry with the good stuff again!
I made this salad a while back and it was AMAZING!  Like, forget the other things in the meal and just make-out with this salad...repeatably. 

Spinach Salad
Recipe Source:  Alton Brown, he is the bomb-diggity

• 8 ounces baby spinach
• 2 large hard boiled eggs
• 8 pieces thick-sliced bacon, chopped
• 3 TBSP red wine vinegar
• 1 tsp sugar (or your favorite sugar substitute)
• 1/2 tsp Dijon Mustard
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 large white mushrooms, sliced
• 3 ounces red onion (1 small), very thinly sliced

Wash and dry (by spinning or patting) the spinach and place into a large mixing bowl.
Slice or chop the hard boiled eggs, set aside.
Fry the bacon and remove to a paper towel to drain, reserving 3 TBSP of the rendered fat.  Crumble bacon and set aside.
Transfer the bacon fat into a small saucepan set over low heat and whisk in the red wine vinegar, sugar, and Dijon Mustard.  Season with a small pinch of salt and black pepper.
Add the mushrooms and the sliced onion to the spinach and toss.  Add the warm dressing and bacon and toss to combine.  Divide the spinach between 4 plates or bowls and evenly divide the egg among them.
Season with pepper, as desired.  Serve immediately.

Hump-Day Confessional

I confess...I will be driving to Austin with 3 kids, a cat, and my mother.  The cat scares me the most.  I have never traveled cross-country with a cat.  Any hints or advice would be greatly appreciated.  The second most scary thing is driving with my mom....she can be like adding another child to the mix...between texting her boyfriend and showing off her new-found dance moves, I may have to drink heavily at night.

I confess...While repacking some boxes in the garage this weekend, I found my old journal from college.  Oh.  My.  Hell.  I was a twit.  Like a majorly boy-crazed, self absorbed, drama queen type-twit.  I am so embarrassed for myself that I was ever like this.  I should have burned it...then buried it...then poured a cement basketball court over top.  But I didn't.  I repacked it.  Bridges of Madison County it isn't....I pity my children for having to find this hideousness one day.

I confess...I am a certified hypnotist.

I confess...In my early 20's, I went  skinny dipping in a lake and woke up the next morning with a rare strain of strep that eventually had to be cut out.  Not flesh eating, but too diseased to heal.  I should be thankful it was just my tonsils and not my lady-bits.

I confess...I want to learn how to do glass-blowing.  Dale Chihuly is my favorite artist...going to see his exhibit at the Bellagio is Las Vegas literally made me weep.  Know what?!  I switched my Groupon city to Austin and one of the first deals to come through was glass-blowing classes!  Ahhh...more signs!

Happy Easter

Hoppy Easter my friends!
Hugs and Sugar-Free Kisses to you all - xoxo